There has been a increasing awareness that calcium antagonists may have beneficial effects on the kidney. Therefore we evaluated the renal and antihypertensive effects of nicardipine treatment in 12 hypertensive patients with chronic renal failure. The drug was given at a dose of 20 mg three times a day. Blood pressure was normalized in almost all cases while the indexes of renal function were improved. A transient deterioration of renal function, probably due to reduction of glomerular capillary pressure was observed in some cases. In conclusion, our data showed a beneficial effect on renal function during nicardipine therapy. This effect could be absent in the most advanced degree of renal damage.